As impressive as the numbers are, they only begin to tell the story of Latino history in the
United States.

The same can be said of the long-overdue documentary
Latino Americans, airing tonight and the next two Tuesdays on PBS.

More than 50 million strong, Latino-Americans make up the largest minority group in the
nation.

The cultural influence of Latino-Americans is extensive on various levels, from music to film to
politics. There is a Latina justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, a Latino senator from Florida who is
seen as a strong possibility for a presidential run in 2016, and Latino twins in Texas are mayor of
San Antonio and a member of Congress.

Some viewers might be surprised to learn that Latino-American history stretches back more than
500 years: As one commentator says in the PBS film, Latinos “didn’t arrive (in the U.S.) the day
before yesterday.”

Latino history has simply been taken for granted.

That is the reason that
Latino Americans probably bites off more than it can chew.

The PBS movie, produced by Cuban-born Adriana Bosch, successfully communicates that both an
overall story of Latino-

American history and separate stories of groups are to be told. The individual stories have much
in common, but their experiences and history are their own as well.

Throughout history, Latinos have been alternately welcomed and rejected in the United States.
The roots of the critical issue of immigration in the 21st century go back hundreds of years.

The six parts of
Latino Americans are arranged both in chronological order and according to areas of the
country where specific groups reside.

The filmmakers do a good job of keeping the plates spinning for six hours, but the show cries
out for a sequel focusing more thoroughly on modern times.